


The Age of Magic and Fire

by 4_15_21_2_20, Your_Friendly_Neighborhood_Lesbian



Category: Original Work
Genre: F/F, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-21
Updated: 2017-01-29
Packaged: 2018-09-10 18:33:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8928421
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/4_15_21_2_20/pseuds/4_15_21_2_20, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Your_Friendly_Neighborhood_Lesbian/pseuds/Your_Friendly_Neighborhood_Lesbian
Summary: War rages through Skepnum, wreaking havoc and destroying lives. A Hero was chosen from the Human World to bring an end to the bloodshed and violence, but they failed, as did the thousands of others after them.Now it's James's turn. Will he end the War, or will he fall like the many before him?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there! This is my first time posting anything here, even though I have so many stories and have had this account for literally a year now. This particular story started a while ago, spawned at 2 am, as most brilliant ideas do. I can only take half the credit, as it was really my best friend, BR0KUT0 (go check out her stuff she's amazing), who came up with the idea. I just put it down on paper. Er, computer. So she, my other friend and I all joined together again and started this. There's not much else to say other than, well, enjoy!

Tuesdays, James reflected, were the worst days. Monday, well, it wasn't really as bad as everyone made it out to be. Tuesdays, however, were the work of Satan himself.

Of course, he may have been a little bit biased, but who could really blame him. All the worst things happened on Tuesday. For example, his dog had died on a Tuesday, and then when he had tried to get another the shop shut down on a Tuesday. The day seemed to drag on forever and it was just horrible in general.

So, really, it shouldn't have been that surprising when he got the mark on his hand on a Tuesday.

James had just stepped out of the shower, singing loudly off key because he was alone in his room, so he could if he goddamn wanted to. He wrapped a towel around his waist and was about to pull a shirt over his head when he noticed it.

It was strangely triangular in shape, bright red and just slightly off center to the middle of his palm. He squinted and turned to put some more light on it. As he watched, it got less and less prominent until it faded into the tan skin of his hand, the only indicator it was ever there a thin white triangle. James’ eyebrows pinched together and he stared at him palm a moment longer before deciding to forget it ever happened. It was gone now, so what what was the point in worrying, right?

In hindsight, James should really have stopped listening to that little voice in his head. It wasn't helping him make good life choices.

He finished getting dressed, collapsing onto his bed. He pulled out his phone and shot a quick text to his roommate Marley. James knew full well he could just walk ten feet to get to her room, but he was too lazy and tired. He had met his fellow prankster in Junior year of High School when they both had gotten sent to the principal's office. Marley had apparently blown multiple things up in the chemistry lab and he had gotten caught putting blue food coloring into the school swimming pool. They had bonded immediately over ridiculous memes and bad puns. After a scolding from the principal, they had pulled off their most successful prank yet, letting three sheep in with the numbers 1, 2, and 4 written on their sides. The staff spent the whole day trying to find sheep 3. James grinned happily at the memory, brown eyes crinkling. 

‘Hey, so, I'm slightly scared for my life because there is a strange triangle shaped thing on my hand. It's strange and red and I think I'm gonna die’ He typed out, forgetting his resolve to ignore it.

There was an answering ding that signaled Marley’s response.

‘Well you're either gonna go on a magical adventure (if so please take me as your +1) or you're just totally boned’

He tossed his phone away from him and buried his head in his pillow. Well she was no help at all. He reached out and snagged his phone again, regretting throwing it in the first place.

‘So I'm either taking u to Unicornlandia or dying?’ He snorted as he typed out his response. Man, he was so funny.

Pretty much, the answering ding read. James rolled his eyes and sent a quick Thanks so much before placing his phone on the bedside table and burrowing under the covers. He was out in seconds.

_________________________

 

James wasn't quite sure what had woken him at first. It was dark and quiet, like all nights, and nothing seemed out of place. Then he winced as a sharp pain shot through his palm, feeling like a raw wire had been pressed against his skin. He removed his hand from where it had been trapped beneath him and goggled at his palm.

The strange mark, weirdly triangular in shape, was back, only this time it was outlined in a dull, pulsing red glow. As James stared at it, the only thing he could think was, ‘I gotta tell Marley about this!’

He snatched up his phone and quickly tapped in his password. His and Marley’s conversation from last night popped up and James typed in a new message, reading, I think you were right about going on a magic adventure. He snapped a picture of his hand and sent that as well.

Holy shit was Marley’s reply and five seconds later his door was thrown open by Marley. She threw on the light and James winced at the sudden brightness. Marley grabbed his hand and turned it this way and that.

“Holy shit,” she repeated, running a hand through the unshaved side of her dyed lilac hair, down from its normal pony tail for once in her life. Her eyebrow piercing flashed in the light, a stark contrast with her dark skin. “Pavitr chrud,” she said once more, only this time in Hindi.

“I know,” James grinned. He extracted his hand from Marley’s grip and held it up, poking the glowing mark. Another jolt of pain shot through his arm and he winced, a surprised yelp leaving his lips.

“What happened? Are you ok?” Marley asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Yeah, I'm fine, but it seems that anytime someone touches it, it hurts me,” he said. Marley looked slyly at his hand.

“What, like this?” She asked, shoving her pointer finger into his hand. Electricity surged through him. He swallowed his pain and glared at her. Marley blinked her dark blue eyes innocently at him. He shoved her off the bed.

“Ouch…” she groaned. James hopped off the bed after her, making sure to land on her hand. “Ok, ok, I'm sorry!” She yelped, clutching her hand to her chest. It was then James realized she was wearing her leather jacket over her dark purple pj’s. He sighed but didn't question it. He was only wearing old, too small scooby doo pajama pants after all.

“What do you think it’s for,” Marley asked, crossing her arms behind her head and resting her feet on the bed. James shrugged and offered her a hand, pulling her to her feet when she took it. She brushed her clothes off and started for the door. “Maybe the answer is somewhere in our crappy apartment.”

She paused at the door when she noticed James wasn’t following her. “What’s up?” she asked, turning around. James was staring at a spot on the floor next to his barf green carpet like it held the secrets to the universe.

“Um, Marley, I think I found the answer,” he murmured quietly, voice heavy with awe. Marley looked at him strangely and went to stand next to him.

“Holy shit.”

There was a triangle carved into the wood floor, edges glowing softly. The inside of it was so black it looked as if someone had photoshopped the floor out, and it seemed to draw in everything, pulling James and Marley forward. James felt a tingle in his palm, not like the painful one, more… calming. Something was calling to him, urging him to place his palm on the hole in his floor.

So he did.

 

_______________________________________

 

Sunlight glowed brightly behind him. The scent of freshly mowed grass and wildflowers filled his nose. He felt the soft texture of dirt beneath his feet, between his toes.

James opened his eyes slowly, wincing at the bright sun. Hadn’t it just been night? He blinked and looked around. He was standing in a field of grass, the long strands blowing gently in the wind. A forest stood just to his left, dark and foreboding. Hadn’t he just been standing in his room? What happened? There had been and mark on his palm, and a hole in his floor… he had brought his hand down and then…. Nothing.

Where was Marley?

James gasped as the memories flooded back. He had stuck his hand in the triangle and there had been a rush of light and he had found himself alone in a dark room. There had been a huge black wolf standing in front of him, it had paced forward to stand in front of him. It had said something… what had it said? Oh that’s right, it had said “Finally”. That struck James as a rather strange thing to say. It also seemed rather strange that a wolf was talking to him at all. Then it had stepped forward and… fused with him? That’s what it had seemed like, at least. He could hear it breathing in his mind if he listened hard enough.

James wondered why he wasn’t freaking out more.

Where was Marley? He was pretty sure she had been standing next to him when he had placed his hand in the triangle. Why had he done that? It seemed kind of stupid in hindsight.

“James!”

He started and turned around. Marley punched him. James went reeling back, clutching his face.

“What the hell is wrong with you!?” She screamed at him, storming towards him. James raised his arms protectively in front of him. Marley hugged him. “I was worried you asshole!” She mumbled. “You’re my only friend, jerk. Don’t do that to me again.”

James hugged her back as best he could with his hands pinned to his chest. “Sorry, sorry,” he laughed, tension he hadn’t even noticed draining out of him. Marley stepped back and punched his shoulder lightly.

“Ok but really, what the heck was that creepy shadow man?” She asked. “It looked like the Grim Reaper. Also, where are we?”

“You really think I know the answer to either of those questions,” James sighed. There was a sharp snapping sound from the forest and James shoved Marley behind him, though he wasn’t entirely sure what he would do if it was a real threat. Marley moved forward so she was standing next to him instead of behind and swatted at his arm.

“I’m not useless you know,” she hissed quietly.

There was another crunch from the forest and a long shadow stretched from the trees. Marley tensed and raised her fists, sliding into a fighting stance. James cowered behind her. A figure stepped from behind a tree, still within the shadows. They stepped into the light.

James couldn’t say whether they were a girl or boy, with close cut blond hair and honey eyes narrowed in suspicion. They were wearing a brown tunic, a leather belt clutched around the waist. Dirty leggings stretched over their legs and a large brown satchel crossed across their chest, filled with books and paper. A sword was sheathed at their hip. Dark tattoos wound past their sleeves and leggings. James couldn’t tell for sure at this distance, but they looked almost like they were scorched on, the black looking like soot and not ink.

“What…?” Marley dropped her hands slightly, one eyebrow quirked. “Have we fallen into the dark ages? What are they wearing?”

James shrugged and inched forward. Marley followed, albit faster.

“Hello?” James called. “You lost?”

“You idiot, we’re the ones who are lost,” Marley snapped. James shrugged helplessly. The person edged forward, raising their hands slightly.

“Are they trying to wave? James whispered, lifting his hand to wave back. The person muttered something, their tattoos glowed briefly and suddenly the grass next to James was on fire.

“HOLY MOTHER OF--,” Marley yelped, grabbing James and jumping back.

“They were not trying to wave, they were NOT trying to wave!” James screamed, nearly bowling Marley over trying to get away. The person started forward and Marley and James tripped over each other trying to run. They landed in a muddled heap, Marley’s hand ending up pinned beneath her and James’ legs tangled in her arms somehow.

They stopped just short of them and raised their hand once more. They muttered an incantation under their breath and then their bag went up in flames. They glanced down at it in mild surprise before shrieking and tearing it off. They threw it to the ground and yelled something. Water poured out of nowhere directly on top of James and Marley.

“Oh, deshimaru!” They groaned before trying a new spell. A tree went up in flames. They stared at it, not even looking shocked, just kind of resigned. “You know what, never mind.” They drew the sword and pointed it at James and Marley.

“Ok, calm down!” James squeaked, putting his hands up in surrender. The person gasped, and shoved their sword forward.

“Where did you get that mark?” They demanded in shaky English. James turned his palm to him. The triangle was still there, red glow not diminished at all by the bright sun.

“I don’t know,” he said slowly. “It just showed up last night after I got out of the shower.” Something occurred to him suddenly and he looked down, confirming his fear.

“I’m still wearing my freaking pyjamas?!” He screeched, tugging at the scooby doo pants. Marley snorted into her hand. The person cocked their head to the side.

“You mean those are your…. sleeping clothes?” They asked. “I thought you just walked around like that all day?”

Marley choked, doubling over and pounding the ground. James glared at her.

“It wasn’t that funny,” he muttered, pouting. Marley just continued cackling. The person slowly relaxed their form, sheathing the sword.

“So I guess it is you this time,” they muttered. James looked at them, confused. Marley caught her breath and did the same. They held out a hand. “I’m Jeon.”

Marley carefully took the offered hand. “I’m Marley Mavis, and he’s James Morris,” she said. James shook after her and licked his lips.

“I’ve been meaning to ask you…” he started. “Are you a boy or a girl?”

Marley slammed her palm into her forehead, but Jeon didn’t seem too offended.

“I’m of the female gender,” she said simply, turning on her heel. “Please follow me to the town.”

Marley and James exchanged looks. “What for?” James asked suspiciously. Jeon looked at him critically, eyeing his bare chest and old pants.

“For a change of clothes, first off,” she said, her lip curling. Marley covered her mouth, uttering a soft, ‘oooooooo’. James opened his mouth to protest but cut himself off with a sigh of agreement.

“Fair enough,” he grumbled, picking himself up off the ground, Marley after him. “Let’s go get us some new clothes. And try to figure out where the hell we are and what the hell you are because I feel like we are severely underreacting to the use of what seems like magic.”

“We are in Skepnum,” Jeon said easily. “And the reason you’re not freaking out right now is either because you are in shock or you have already processed and accepted it. Or maybe it is something a bit more subconscious than that…”

James’ mind flashed back to the wolf. He could hear its heartbeat mixing with his own now. He swiped his tongue over his lips, teeth feeling sharper than they should have been. He felt cold, like his skin should have been covered in… not clothes? Something thicker, something warmer, something like fur. He imagined he could hear everything, that he could hear that little songbirds melody from miles away.

“James, what the hell!” He heard Marley yell. But it seemed so far away, and it was so cold. He felt another mind surround him and seep into his own. It was soothing. He felt like he was coming home, like everything was falling into place. He felt dirt beneath paws instead of feet, and he was finally warm, black fur covering him. He opened his eyes and looked into the mildly horrified face of Marley, and Jeon’s surprised one.

What the heck? He thought. What’s up with them? I’m just a wolf now-- Everything screeched to a halt. Oh my god I’m a wolf.

“What happened?!” Marley screeched, grabbing Jeon’s shoulders and shaking. Jeon just blinked and shrugged.

“Guess he’s a werewolf,” she hummed. Marley let go and stumbled back a few steps, fingers pressed into her forehead.

“Oh, is that all?” She hissed, lips twitching into a disbelieving smile, as normal when something shocked her beyond what she could handle. Jeon nodded absently, walking over to James and running a hand through his fur. He bumped his head against her hand and rumbled something that resembled a content purr deep in his throat. He could definitely see why dogs liked to be pet now.

“I’ve never seen a werewolf this big, however,” Jeon said curiously. She reached for something by her side, but only grasped empty air. The smell of burning grass reached their noses.

“Oh, deshimaru,” Jeon muttered. The flames from the burning tree and her bag had lit a forest fire, and by now half of the forest and meadow was burning, fire licking the sky with bright orange tongues.

“Oh, mal, mal, mal, MAL!” Marley screamed, turning on her heel and running, Jeon and James hot on her heels. Pun not intended. James quickly overtook them, leaping forward in great loping strides. He heard a scream and skidded to a halt, turning to see what had happened, only to realize he was much further ahead than he had thought.

“James!” He heard Marley screech. Jeon’s voice soon joined hers and panic surged through him. He sprinted back the way he had come. There was a huge burning trunk across his path and he could just see Marley’s purple hair through the flames. He tried to call out to them, but the only thing that came out was a howl.

“Oh, thank the gods,” Jeon laughed. “James, can you get over the trunk?”

James let out a whimper, the heat starting to burn his eyes and the smoke scratched his throat.

“Well, you’re gonna have to try--” Marley was cut off by a hoarse cough that shook her whole body. She clamped a hand to her mouth and nose, using the other to raise her shirt over her face. Jeon coughed harshly too, and held out her hands. She whispered something and her tattoos burned a dull red. The air around them cleared momentarily before collapsing. She grit her teeth and shouted, “Bolha!”. Her tattoos burned like the fire around them and the clean air was back once again, and this time it stayed. Jeon collapsed to her knees, sweat dripping down her face.

“James, I am not going to be able to hold this for long, you’re gonna have to jump,” she called, strain clear in her voice. “Else, there's a very real chance we will die.”

James backed up a little bit before giving a sharp bark in response. He pushed off hard from his back legs and sprung forward, going faster and faster, ignoring the sparks that snapped on either side of them. He was within range… now!

He flew over the trunk, flames lapping at his belly. He landed hard and skid a few feet, leaving deep gouges in the earth. He looked up to see Marley cradling Jeon, who had finally given into the weight of magic and smoke inhalation. He nudged Marley hard in the shoulder and gestured to his back when she looked up at him.

“You want us to get on your back?” She blinked. James nodded and Marley shrugged, though she still looked slightly apprehensive. “Guess we don’t really have a choice, do we.” She hauled Jeon up and James bent down so Marley could heave her onto his back before swinging up herself. “Ok, I was never really good at horseback riding, so please don’t let me fall oooAAAH!” James had lurched forward while she was still talking, just missing a falling branch.

“Oh, you bitch,” she muttered quietly, leaning over Jeon so she wouldn’t fall off. She wound her hands into James black fur and rested Jeon between his shoulder blades. She shut her eyes tightly as James jumped the trunk again, grunting slightly when they landed.

The wind rushed in her ears and her face felt like it was being peeled off, wind smacking her in the face when she tried to raise her head. She felt a cold hand on her neck and the hairs there raised up. But she wasn’t scared. A dark shadow reached out and held her hand, sending a wave of calm through her. She relaxed and as she felt James slow, she let the darkness claim her.

 

_______________________________________________

End chapter 1


	2. Chapter 2

Start chapter 2

_______________________________________________

 

A soft voice reached Marley, slowly pulling her from sleeps hold. She turned on her side and muttered a soft, not entirely intelligible, “Five more minutes…”. There was a slight displacement of air and suddenly her head jerked to the left and her cheek stung to hell.

“Son of a--” she jerked awake completely and shot up, cupping her sore cheek. She looked around blearily, taking in Jeon’s panicked face and James’ relieved expression.

“James!” Jeon scolded. “She’s practically dead! You don’t just slap someone who is pretty much dead!”

“Well, why not?” James asked, confused. “It worked didn’t it?”

“I don’t- I mean, that’s not-- Uh-” Jeon didn’t seem to have anything to say to that and sat back, looking kind of shocked. James nodded, seemingly happy with that response. Marley cleared her throat, trying to catch their attention again.

“Soo, what exactly happened?” She asked awkwardly. James shifted his eyes back over to her and frowned slightly.

“Honestly, I don’t really remember much either. I can remember flashes of intense emotion, mostly fear and confusion, but nothing solid. Well, that is, until Jeon woke up and hit me.” He rubbed the side of his head, scowling at Jeon. “That really hurt, you know.”

Jeon shrugged unapologetically.

“Anyway, she woke up, hit me, and then tried to guide us out of the burning forest. Unfortunately, fire can really change things up, and smoke is never a good thing to inhale. So, it took us a while to get out, and when we did, you were…” James paused, then took a breathe, as if steeling himself. “You were dead, Marley.”

Marley felt her throat close up. She slowly raised a hand and placed it on her chest, just above where her heart should be. Only…

“James, where is my heartbeat,” Marley asked, shivers wracking her body. “Where is it?! James, please--”

“Marley, calm down!” Jeon shouted, grabbing Marley’s hands, which were desperately scrabbling at her flesh, as if trying to peel away the soft brown skin and find the vital organ that should have been pumping blood through her veins. Marley’s breathing was erratic, blood rising from the scratches and clumped under her sharp fingernails.

“Where’s my heart?” She whispered brokenly. Jeon gazed at her sadly and James glared at the floor.

“It’s still there,” Jeon muttered, softly letting go of Marley’s hands. “It just… isn’t working anymore. Marley, I’m sorry, but you are dead, in every sense of the word.”

James flinched slightly. “I’m sorry, Marley,” he murmured. “If I had been faster--” his voice caught and he clamped a hand over his mouth. Tears slipped down his face and over his hand. Muffled whimpers pushed past his lips and he curled up, bringing his knees to his chest.

It was like a damn broke and soon Marley was shuddering in gasping sobs too. Jeon looked around wildly, completely out of her depth. Marley and James somehow ended up crying into her shoulders, tightly clinging to each other.

“Uh… there, there?” Jeon awkwardly patted their shoulders and James coughed out watery laughter, Marley joining in, and soon they were all laughing at the complete absurdity of the situation.

“I’m dead, James is a werewolf, and we’re in freaking Unicornia Land,” Marley giggled madly, wiping her wet eyes on Jeon’s tunic. Jeon scowled down at her and flicked her shoulder, producing another round of laughter.

Finally they all detangled themselves and James swept the last tears from his face. Marley took a couple deep breaths and faced Jeon.

“Ok, so, how exactly am I still here, breathing and laughing if I’m dead and my heart’s stopped?” She smiled.

“Oh, that’s easy,” Jeon smiled back. “You’re a Grim Reaper.”

There was a small silence. Marley blinked slowly. “I’m a what now,” she finally said, eyebrows raising into her hairline.

“A Grim Reaper,” Jeon repeated. “Normally they die and come back at a very young age, but you are a special case, obviously.”

“Obviously,” Marley repeated faintly. Then she shrugged and placed her head in her hands. “You know what, why not? Why the heck not. James is a werewolf and I’m the goddamn Grim Reaper.” She started muttering to herself quietly. Jeon started to say something, but James raised a hand.

“Just let her ride it out,” he said. “It’ll be fine, trust me. She’s just trying to cope the only way she knows how.”

There was a sharp snap and then Marley was holding a small lighter, watching the flame flicker in tiny bursts. She waved it out and then lit it again, watching it and then putting out. Snap, silence, a whoosh of displaced air, over and over.

“She’s a pyromaniac,” James explained quietly at Jeon’s confused look. “She burns things as a way of relieving stress, but ever since she nearly went to jail for arson, she’s been trying to find new ways to use fire to cope. So, she carries around a lighter and does, well, this when things get to be too much.”

They watched her for a few more minutes.

“So… you live in research lab then?” James asked curiously, looking around the room. It was a small place whose door was hidden away behind rows and rows of bookshelves from the main area. It was rather cozy, with a couple of squishy armchairs and tables overflowing with notes and open books. A bed and nightstand were shoved against the wall, as if sleep was a tedious activity that kept her from more important things.

“Yes, pretty much,” Jeon replied. “There was some… well, I had a disagreement with my family and I left home a while back. I’ve always been pretty interested in human culture and history in general, and this place happened to be hiring, one thing led to another, and here I am.”

James nodded sympathetically. “Well, I’m sorry about your family, but you seem to be pretty happy here, so I guess it all worked out in the end.”

Jeon snorted. “Don’t feel sorry about my family. They were pretty horrible people after all. But, yeah, I’m happy about my little place here, though it can get monotonous and boring after a while.”

“What are we still doing here?” Marley suddenly asked, capping her lighter and slipping into her jacket pocket. “James is sitting around in his pyjama bottoms and I’m still in mine too. Didn’t you say something about new clothes, Jeon?”

Jeon nodded and stood, stretching. “Let’s go clothes shopping, then.”

 

___________________________________________

 

The town was more like a city in Marley’s opinion. It was filled with amazing shops with names such as, Tom’s Magic Shop or Dragon Diner, which had a giant dragon skull across the doorway. There were stands with incredible pieces of jewelry and Marley swore she heard an amulet talking and joking with anyone who stopped to look. The people were no less exotic, horns and wings and scaly skin everywhere, sometimes at the same time. But there was always one consistent thing. Everyone was staring at her and James.

At first she thought it was just becuase of James’ stupid attire, but then she heard someone muttering about ‘humans’ and ‘a new quest’ and ‘war’, which seemed a little fishy to her. Jeon never did explain why she was so freaked out by the mark on James’ palm, and there was also the fact that they shouldn’t even be here, because this should have been impossible.

But Marley was more than willing to go along with it. Not like she had much going for her in her world after all.

Jeon led them to a clothing store (or Marley assumed it was a clothing store) called Hero’s Wears. The bell jingled merrily as Jeon pushed the door open, and Marley and James found themselves enveloped in the calming scent of Jasmine. It was a fairly rustic place, with wooden floorboards and walls. A curly haired man, who waved cheerily at them when they entered, stood behind the register. There were a couple more customers, among them a snotty looking woman with horns, a mother and her kid, a bored looking lizard person thing, and a dark skinned man with a fur cape wrapped around his shoulders.

Jeon led them over to a clothes rack, which held, among other things, comfortable looking shirts, soft pants, and heavy iron armor. Swords and axes were hanging from pegs on the wall, sharpened and gleaming.

“Wow, ok what,” Marley asked dumbly, staring at a vial of swirling green smoke, which was changing shape to make strange smoky animals she hadn’t seen before. Jeon pulled her away from the shelf and shoved her at the clothes.

“Pick whatever you want,” she said. “I’ll probably have enough money.”

Marley and James nodded at her and turned to the rack. Marley looked through it, pulling out a gaudy brown shirt, gold patterns like curling vines running all over. Marley grimaced and put it back. She grabbed another shirt, this one plain brown with long sleeves. Black traced the collar, which dipped shallowly in the middle. A dull silver belt was clenched around the middle, the small black buckle hanging loosely. Marley slung it over her shoulder and snatched a pair of black, loose fitting pants and soft looking leather boots.

“Yo, Jeon, where’s the changing room?” She called over to her friend, who was admiring a rapier with a slim silver handle. She looked over and shrugged.

“Ask the cashier guy, he works here,” she told her unhelpfully. Marley raised an eyebrow but complied.

“Hey, you,” Marley said, not unkindly, to the boy as she approached. “Could you tell me where the changing room is?”

“Yes ma’am, please give me a second first,” he replied, finishing ringing up the lizard man, who had bought a vial of something thick, blue, and oozy. ‘Safe Shine’ the label boasted ‘The finest Scale Polish around’. Marley nodded and leaned against the counter, observing the man.

He had dark curly hair and kind, if slightly bored amber eyes. Tanned hands deftly slid gold coins into the register and a permanent smile quirked his lips. A delicate silver earring set with a shining sky blue crystal dangled from his right ear, a smaller, darker blue stud earring above it, seeming to glow with its own light, and leather cord decorated with worn green glass beads hung from his neck. He seems nice, Marley thought.

“Please follow me, ma’am,” he said, shaking Marley out her thoughts. There was a dull thunk with every other step he took, and when he rounded the counter, Marley saw a metal leg sticking out from his brown pants.

“Metal leg,” Marley said, very articulately, thank you very much. Then she slapped a hand over her mouth. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude--”

The man waved a hand, laughing. “Don’t worry about it, ma’am. There was an accident a while back and I lost my leg. It’s not uncommon here.”

Marley smiled back. There was something calming about this guy, like being welcomed home after a long day. “Please, call me Marley. I’m not that old.”

“Marley then,” he said. “Please follow me.” He hadn’t even made it one step before James jumped out at them, wearing the most violently pink and ruffly shirt Marley had ever seen, a gigantic top hat, a pair of pants with a huge yellow patch at the crotch, and to top it all off, the tiniest, most ineffective dagger in his hand. Marley was half sure it was plastic and not actually meant to be a weapon.

James let out an explosive laugh and put his hands on his hips, puffing out his chest. “How do I look, my dear friend?” He asked exuberantly. “I feel like a warrior!”

“James did you change in the middle of the shop?” Marley asked.

“It’s not changing if I didn’t take off my clothes.”

“Sir, as funny as that is, I’m going to have to ask you to please put the dagger up,” the cashier boy said monotonously. “I’m not allowed to let children handle the weapons.”

James looked at Marley, eyebrows raised. “Did he just sass me?” He asked, disbelief coloring his words. Marley grinned back.

“I like him,” James smirked back. “Hey, what’s your name?”

“I’m Irma Enderel, sir,” Irma told them. “But, seriously, I need you to put that back. I could get fired.”

“Anything for a pretty face,” James winked. Irma rolled his eyes and gestured for Marley to follow him.

“Shutdown,” Marley whispered as she passed, snickering. Irma lead her to the changing room, which was very small and cramped, before waving and returning to his post. It was slightly out of place so it got caught on the worn floorboards, Marley shoved the door shut and dumped her clothes on the bench.

“Well, I hope this all fits,” Marley said before picking up the first article of clothing.

Meanwhile, James was slowly putting back everything he had put on, sadly stroking the giant top hat as he placed it back on its shelf.

“You realize you do actually need to find clothes, right?” Jeon deadpanned from behind him. James jumped slightly, though he would deny it to his dying day.

“Yeah, yeah,” he cleared his throat. “Just gimme a sec.” He grabbed a baggy black shirt off the hanger and rushed to the dressing room. Then he ran back. “I forgot pants and shoes,” he mumbled sheepishly. Jeon raised an unimpressed eyebrow in his direction.

He snatched a pair of black pants and leather boots before making his way back to the dressing room again. As he passed Irma, the snooty old woman approached the desk. Irma nodded at him and turned to the woman, who looked to be buying half of the store.

He reached the changing room just as Marley emerged, decked out in her new clothes, leather jacket tied around her waist.

“Everything fits,” she said cheerfully, stretching and trying to get the stiffness out of the pants. James gave her a thumbs up and slipped into the changing room just as the door was shutting.

As Jeon watched James forget his pants, she, for the millionth time, regretted bringing them with her. She was just going to bring them to the king and then leave them, but as she watched them struggle around the shop, she felt strangely responsible for them. She had this sinking feeling that if they were left to their own devices, they would destroy the world faster than the war would.

And that was another thing. James and Marley were far from the first humans to end up in Skepnum. In fact, there had been more than one thousand before them. 1,302, to be precise. Not a single one of them had succeeded in finding whatever was at the end of the Quest. And that triangle that was on James’ hand marked him as the Hero, as impossible as it seemed. Jeon wasn’t actually sure why Marley was here as well, as there had never been two people at the same time, strangely enough. Jeon wasn’t sure why, it seemed like there should have been at some point. Maybe the Mark filtered out other humans?

Was Marley human?

Well, no, not anymore, obviously. Neither of them were. Why did they call them Humans if they stopped being human as soon as they touched the soil of Skepnum, Jeon wondered. She huffed a breath and shook her head. This whole system was a mess, she had decided that a long time ago.

“I’m only ten dollars short!” Jeon was shaken out of her thoughts by a sharp, annoyingly fake high pitched voice. She looked over at the register, where a nice looking man with curly hair was trying to reason with an old woman with large moose horns wearing a fancy looking silk dress and carrying a huge leather purse.

“Ma’am, that’s quite a lot, and I can’t let you leave with all of this if you can’t pay for it,” the young man said calmly, raising an eyebrow.

“My expenses should be payed by me paying my taxes for cripples like you,” the old woman spat loudly, looking pointedly down at the boy’s metal leg. For a second it was dead silent in the store and the boy looked taken aback. He opened his mouth, fury in his eyes but then a loud voice from the back yelled--well, Jeon wasn't quite sure what he yelled, as she only caught the sound and not the words, too caught up in her own thoughts for it to really register.

James, who had been passing the man in the fur cape (who was the one who had screamed, as far as Jeon could tell) yelped loudly and jumped backward, directly into a shelf holding delicate items. The shelf crashed to the ground, hitting a rack of clothing, which in turn smashed into a wall of weapons, which had them falling down onto a ball holding a replica of the galaxy, which expanded until it encompassed the whole of the shop, stars hovering around them in swirling patterns. Jeon watched all of this happen with the same detached calmness of someone watching a trainwreck. A star flew into her open mouth.

“Holy shit dude,” Marley said, loud in the deafening quiet. A constellation was perched just behind her head, looking distressingly like a giant top hat.

The boy with the metal leg watched it all unfold with wide eyes. “I am so fired,” he whispered.

“You are sooo fired,” Marley agreed.

 

______________________________________________

 

“I’m sorry I got you fired,” James said. Irma stared at him, taking a deep breath.

“You’re fine. It was only a matter of time after all,” Irma managed a smile, though his eyes still looked distressingly empty. “But now I have no money, besides what I saved up.”

“Well, it could be worse, right?” Marley tried.

“Marley, I worked in retail for minimum wage and I just got fired from my other job, which was waiting tables. It literally could not be worse,” Irma sighed. Jeon shifted uncomfortably. She knew she was going to regret what she was about to say at some point in the near future.

“Umm… you could come with us,” she muttered. “James is a Hero, and you could take a job as the Knight with us.”

Irma stared at Jeon, then at James. “He’s a Hero?!”

“Why do I feel like I’ve just been insulted?” James whispered to Marley.

“I mean, well, I would love to, but I have to check up on my parents every now and then, they get lonely and--” Irma stuttered, amber eyes growing wide.

“It pays 1,000 Jewels.”

“I’m in,” Irma said instantly. There was a soft cough from behind them. They turned and saw the caped man from the shop standing there. He was tall, but still stood a leath four inches below James. Scars stretched across his face and arms, and Jeon realized the fur cape was made out of Ahu fur, the distinct blue marking stark against black fur. His black, dreadlocked hair was pulled back into a loose, low ponytail, held together with a thick brown cloth. Silver stud earrings flashed in the midafternoon sun. Irma yelped and jumped back, face flushing.

“Uhm…” the dark man started, voice deep and velvety. “I’m sorry I got you fired!” He said suddenly, bowing at the waist. Irma blinked at him.

“Ah… it’s fine, but I think it was James that got me fired, not you,” he said.

“Wow, thanks,” James muttered.

“You are kind, but I did startle the clumsy man into the shelves,” the caped man told them.

“What is it, National Insult James Day?! Did I miss the memo?!”

“Please, let me try to make it up to you!” The man grabbed Irma’s hand. Irma blinked dumbly, staring down at where his hand was encased in the man’s calloused fingers.

“Uhh--”

Jeon shoved in front of Irma, forcing the man to let go of Irma’s hand.

“So, you would do anything to try to repay him, right?” She asked, hands on her hips. The man nodded vigorously. “Then you can join us to help teach James and Marley how to fight.”

“Jeon! You can’t decide that!” Marley cried.

“Then how did you expect to learn? And anyway, you need a Mage, a Knight, a Guard, and an Assassin to go on the Quest,” Jeon shot back.

“What quest?! You haven’t explained anything!” Marley exclaimed, throwing her hands up. “And are you expecting to be the Mage?”

“What’s wrong with that?!”

“YOU LIT YOURSELF AND A WHOLE FOREST ON FIRE WHEN YOU USED MAGIC!”

“Hey, I’m a Mage too,” Irma interjected, raising a hand. Jeon, Marley and James stared at him.

“You are?” Jeon asked.

“Yeah. I’m a Mage of Life.” He pulled a small metal wolf out of his pocket. He closed his hands around it and seafoam green light glowed briefly. He opened his hands again and the tiny wolf stood and stretched.

“Ok, that’s pretty cool,” James admitted. Irma grinned and handed him the wolf.

“You can keep it, I have plenty at home,” he smiled. James took the wolf and stared at it as it sat on its haunches and scratched at its metal ear.

“Where’d you even get this?” He asked

“I built it,” Irma said in an ‘obviously’ kind of voice. “I build all of my stuff. I built my leg too.” He rapped his knuckles against the prosthetic. Marley hummed appreciatively.

“Ok, it’s decided. We’re keeping him,” Marley said, nodding sharply. The caped man stepped forward.

“Please, let me join you,” he said, placing a hand over his heart. “I will do my best to teach James and Marley how to fight and I will keep all of you safe. I am a Berserker, I will not let any harm come upon you.”

“Sure, I don’t see why not,” Marley shrugged. James held up both hands.

“Hey, whoa, whoa, whoa. Who even said I wanted to be taught by Mr. Holier Than Thou?” He said. “And I’m still confused about this whole Hero, Mage, Quest thing.”

“My name is not Mr. Holier Than Thou,” the man interjected. “It’s Ahlam Rowan. Please, call me that.” He glared slightly at James, who matched him.

“Oh, I’m so incredibly sorry, Mr. Holier Than Thou,” he snarked. Ahlam looked like he was about to respond, but he took a deep breath and looked away.

“I will do my best to be an asset if you let me join you,” he said calmly, ignoring the way James twitched behind him at being ignored.

Marley, Jeon, and Irma looked at each other. “I mean, I don’t see why he shouldn’t,” Irma said. The others nodded in agreement.

James spread his arms and gaped at them. “Guys, what--”

“James, shut up,” Jeon sighed. James’ mouth snapped shut and he blinked a few times. He sat down dumbly on a bench.

“Welcome to the club!” Irma said cheerfully, sticking his hands in his pockets. Ahlam smiled warmly at him.

“Thank you kindly,” he nodded. “How do we make this offical, though? Don’t you have to go through a test or something?”

“Honesty, I don’t know much about the whole process,” Jeon said. “I just work at the Research Center. I can tell you exactly what the Quest is about, but I have no idea what you do to get started.”

“Can someone please tell us what this whole ‘quest’ thing is!?” James suddenly shouted, leaping up. “What if we don’t want to go on some sort of useless, stupid quest? What if we want to go home? I don’t about you, but I miss my bed and I miss my family! I want to go home, don’t you, Marley?”

Marley shifted awkwardly glancing away. “James… you know I don’t have anything waiting for me back home. I wasn't kidding when I said you were my only friend.” She looked down, then back at James. “But… if you really want to go home, well, you aren't leaving without me.” She tried for a grin.

James looked away, scowling. He knew Marley was alone, and she was always talking of wanting to leave, to get away. He was just being a burden to her. This whole thing wasn’t fair on either of them. They had been taken away from their own land, maybe even their own world. James had a family, he had siblings and parents, and he missed them. He missed his own bed, his own clothes, his own damn body. But Marley didn’t have a family to go back to. And even though she had died, this was probably like a dream come true to her. And of course it was to him, too. I mean, who hasn’t dreamed of being dropped into a magical world and being granted incredible powers? James just didn’t realize it would be so… lonely.

Jeon cleared her throat. “I am sorry you were yanked away from your home, and your world. But perhaps the answer lays at the end of this Quest. No one knows what is at the end, so maybe it is a way back to your own home.”

James glowered but nodded. He turned and sighed deeply, trying to regain composure. “Let’s just go,” he bit out, trying not to sound too ungrateful and rude. He didn’t do very well.

Jeon sighed and gestured for them to follow, taking the lead.

____________________________

The King’s palace was grand, obviously. It was huge, with wide tawny walls made of stone and two towers bracketing the entrance. The door itself was heavy stained oak wood, bigger than ten of James stacked together, and he was almost 6’’5, and wider than his entire apartment. Two burly guards stood at attention before the door, decked out in heavy back armor. The one on the right had one hand on a massive sword hanging at his hip, and the one on the left clutched a long spear like a lifeline. Jeon marched up to them fearlessly, one hand wrapped tightly around James’s right wrist, the rest of the group not far behind.

“We request an audience with the King,” Jeon stated loudly and clearly, head held high and back straight as a ramrod. The guards glanced at each other, then back to Jeon.

“Do you have an invitation?” Asked the one on the right, with a voice that sounded like he had been gargling sandpaper. Jeon shoved James’ palm in his face.

“I think this should suffice,” she said coldly. The guard's eyes widened and he waved at the other guard.

“Let them pass,” he said. The second man nodded, a little hesitantly, and pulled on the chain attached to the bottom of the door, slowly lifting the door up. The first guard lead them through.

The first hallway was almost entirely polished marble. Jade statues of creatures James didn’t recognize lined the walls. Columns of cold white marble stretched from the floor to the ceiling and veins of gold twisted together to form great towering dragons that wound up them. Their shoes thudded dully against the reflective floor.

The guard led them through another door, much less impressive than the first, into what James could only assume was the throne room. Huge billowing tapestries rolled from gold bars high on the walls. Many depicted great battles, blood spilt from the fallen and power radiating from the victor. Others showed beautiful women and monsters of incomprehensible terror, teeth barred and sharpened. A statue of what looked like a Hydra and some sort of giant flaming bird framed the doorway.

In the middle, across from the door, sat the throne, a giant stone chair carved from pure obsidian, inlaid with silver threads of metal. The man that sat upon them was no less regal, with long black hair pulled into a loose ponytail and dark, piercing eyes. A perpetual frown tugged at his lips, drawing his eyebrows together. Robes of red hugged his body and a gold crown nestled on his head. He had no visible weapon, but James still felt oddly weary of the man.

“My lord Inoshi,” the guard bowed, gesturing for them to do the same. Inoshi waved a hand and the guard straightened.

“Who are these people, Ortheo?” Lord Inoshi asked quietly, though James still heard it clearly. He felt Marley move up behind him.

“What’s with this guy,” she whispered into his ear. “He gives me the creeps.” James shrugged, not quite knowing how to answer when he had the same misgivings.

Ortheo pulled James forward, much to James’ annoyance. He was getting tired of being yanked around all the time.

“This one has the mark of the Hero,” he said, almost nervously. Lord Inoshi didn’t show any outward shock, though he did lean forward in his seat slightly.

“Is that so?” He asked. “Bring them forward.”

Ortheo nodded respectfully and ushered the group past him, up to the King. Jeon strided to the front, gaze steely. Irma lingered at the back, still slightly stunned at the abundance of wealth just being flaunted around. He felt awkward just walking on the smooth stone of the floor in his dirty boots. Ahalm looked back at him and offered an encouraging smile, gently pushing Irma ahead of him with a sweep of his broad arm.

“Do you realize the significance of that Mark on your hand, boy?” Lord Inoshi looked down his nose at James. James shook his head slowly, not taking his eyes off the Lord. Lord Inoshi elegantly snorted, though how he managed that, James did not know.

“That Mark proclaims to everyone that you are the Hero of this Quest,” Lord Inoshi began. “There is a war raging across Skepnum, started here in Gaeis. It began as simply a Civil War, the people of the capital sick of living under the Royal family. But it spilled across the whole continent, and soon the whole world.”

James felt Jeon tense behind him. He turned slightly and saw Jeon and Ahalm looking unnaturally uncomfortable. Jeon stared straight ahead, not even glancing at James while Ahalm had shut his eyes tight and was taking large, deep breaths, as though he was trying to calm himself down. Irma placed a hand on Ahalm’s shoulder and squeezed softly.

Lord Inoshi cleared his throat, catching James’ attention again. “We have had many Heroes before you, and I don’t doubt we will have many more after you. The survival rate for this particular Quest is painfully low,” Lord Inoshi sighed, a look of exhaustion passing his face briefly before disappearing like it was never there. “You will have to choose a Mage, Knight, Guard, and Assassin to accompany you on your Quest, though,” and here he swept his gaze along the rest of James’s small group, a small smile playing along his lips. “It seems you’ve already found your group.”

“Rukie, Jeon’s a Knight, Ahalm’s the Guard, Irma’s the Mage, does that mean I’m the Assassin?!” Marley yelped, taking a step back. “I’ve never killed anyone! I mean, sure, I’ve come close, but I’ve never done it!”

“Well you don’t have much of a choice if you want to go on this Quest with us,” Jeon growled, fists clenching and unclenching next to her. She took a deep, shuddering breath and visibly restrained herself. “You need to have a purpose in the group to go on this Quest.”

“She has a point, Marley,” Ahalm chimed in. “You must fulfill a place in this Quest. You don’t have a choice, as Jeon said.”

“Ahalm! That’s not fair or true!” Irma cried, slapping his arm. “If she’s not comfortable with it, there’s no reason to force her.”

“You haven’t seen the War as I have, Irma. You don’t get to sit out if you can’t stomach it. You do it and live, or you don’t and you die.”

“Ahalm’s right, Marley. Choose now--”

“I can't believe all of you--”

“Marley, pick--”

Everyone started screaming over one another, Marley looking frantically from one face to another, blood rushing in her ears like thunder, drowning out all rational thought. She grasped frantically at her pockets for her lighter, only to realize she had zipped up the pocket she had put it in and she couldn’t reach it.

“SHUT UP, WOULD YOU!” James suddenly roared, shocking everyone into silence, Jeon inches away from Irma’s face while Ahalm had a hand on both of their shoulders, pausing it the motion of pushing them apart. “Thank you,” James sighed. He looked over at Marley, who had one hand scrabbling at her jacket pocket. He gestured for her to follow, and lead the way away from the group.

“Marley, are you ok?” Was the first thing James asked, grasping her shoulders. Marley nodded, letting out a breath.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little overwhelmed,” she said, rubbing her temples. “I mean, this is great and all, but I didn’t sign up to become an Assassin for god’s sake.”

James chuckled. “I know how you feel. I don’t know about this whole Quest thing, honestly. I’m scared and I feel completely under prepared, but I’ve felt that way about a lot of things. Mostly tests. But you are always there to help me up and keep me moving forward. I know it’s gonna be a long journey for people we don’t even know, but I’m sure we can get through this together. You’re my best friend, Marley. We will get through this.”

Marley grinned, lightly punching James’s chest. “Aw, you big sap, you. You’re my best friend too.” She held up a hand for a high five. James clapped their hands together and they grinned at each other.

“Let’s fucking do this,” Marley smirked. James nodded firmly and they parted, heading back to the group.

 

__________________________

End chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ruki- Wait


	3. Chapter 3

Begin chapter 3

__________________________

 

After James and Marley got back to the group and explained Marley agreed to joining, Lord Inoshi spoke up once more.

“Now that you have your choices for your group, we shall see if they are worthy. Let the Trials begin!” He raised a hand and jerked in sharply to the ground.

“Wait, what--” was all James got out before the ground opened up beneath him and they were all falling into the dark.

“Oh, you have got to be KIDDING!” James shreeched, one hand fastening over Marley’s bicep in a claw-like grip. Irma started shouting what sounded like curses in his native tongue, which sounded a bit like a strange mix of Russian and Brazilian, Ahalm squeezing his hand tightly, looking like he was having a silent mental breakdown. Jeon looked strangely calm, falling spread eagle.

Before they could hit the ground, they jerked to a halt inches above the floor. Then they fell once again.

“Oww,” James groaned, face smushed on the stone. Marley stood first, rubbing her back. She yanked James to his feet, muttering a short, “Get up,”.

“Welcome to the arena!” Lord Inoshi’s voice echoed through the seemingly large area. “This is where you will be tested, to see if you are truly worthy of the titles bestowed upon you.”

Lights flashed on, momentarily blinding them. When the last of the black spots danced out of James's vision, he saw they had landed in a huge, largely empty marble room. The only decorations were, once again, statues of animals James didn’t know and a few of mythical beasts he did know. James was starting to wonder if Lord Inoshi had some sort of fetish.

“You will be split up into three groups.” As he spoke, stone walls shot up between them, forcing Irma and Ahalm into one corner, Jeon and James into another, and Marley on her own.

“Damnit!” Marley shouted, pounding on the rightmost wall. “Are you guys ok?!”

There was no response.

“Don’t you worry your curiously dyed head.” Lord Inoshi chucked. “Your friends are fine, but they can’t hear you. You won’t be able to hear them either. Once you finish your task, you will see them again. Or, at least, you’ll see the ones that passed.”

Marley stepped away from the wall, teeth grinding together. “Fine. I’ll play your stupid game. What’s my task.” She spat out the word like it was acid on her tongue.

Lord Inoshi laughed again. “I’d save that fire if I were you. You might need it later.”

“Oh trust me, I have plenty of fire to go around,” Marley grinned sharply, teeth gleaming. There was a strange kind of feeling in her body and mind, a paradox of sorts it felt. A warm ice, a happy anger. She let it consume her, let it wash over her like a wave. She opened her eyes, not sure when she shut them, a saw the shadows around her stretch and crawl up her arms and back. There was a slight sting and then the dark fell away, leaving pitch black, slightly smoking swirling designs edged in purple twisting all the way up to her shoulder blades, sneaking onto her back and chest. They danced for a second before settling into a pattern like the old tribal paint Marley remembered seeing in a history museum once a long, long time ago. Skeletal hands cupped her cheeks and then there was a cloaked man before her, grinning a skeleton grin.

Welcome home, Marley. He whispered, and then disappeared in a whisp of displaced air.

Marley took a deep breath and curled her hands around empty air, only to find an iron rod topped with a curved blade in her newly tattooed hands.

“A sythe. Could you be more obvious?” She sighed, testing the weight and swinging it around a few times.

“Hmm… a Reaper.” Lord Inoshi hummed. “I must say, I wasn’t expecting that. Ah, well. Your task is simple. You must kill five men without being detected. Here, I’ll make it easier for you, since I’m such a generous man.” A slab of marble crashed over the top of her cage, plunging the world into darkness before lights flickered on, one in each corner of the room.

Before Marley could tell Lord Inoshi that she was very much alone in here, there was the sound of stone sliding against stone and the soft murmur of voices.

“Wait, I have to kill actual people?” Marley whispered, mildly horrified. She imagined a cold hand on her shoulder, reassuring her that it would all be worth it in the end. She just needed to get through this.

Marley shrugged the feeling off and gripped her weapon tighter, slipping easily into the shadows.

“Alright. Let’s do this.”

 

________________________________________

 

To say James was panicking would be the understatement of the century. He was beyond the point of panic, floating aimlessly somewhere between complete mental breakdown and sobbing like a lost child. Luckily, he had Jeon with him, who was more than willing to slap some sense into him as many times as it took.

It really only took one slap. James personally thought the other two were more therapeutic than anything.

He looked around the walls encircling him and Jeon, rubbing his cheek. Gladiator-looking droids, sleek and white, stood at attention, lining the blank walls. An unknown light source lit the room up in bright white light.

“Hello Hero, Knight,” Lord Inoshi’s voice crackled to life, resonating clearly through the room, echoing slightly in the large space. “Welcome to your Trials.”

“Where are our friends, you sick bastard?” James growled, bristling. Lord Inoshi chuckled.

“You are so much like that Grim Reaper girl. This first thing you worry about is not yourself, but your companions. Such a strange group, I’m noticing,” he sighed. “Your friends are fine, don’t strain yourself. They will go through their Trials, and, assuming they-and you- pass, you will all meet at the end.”

Jeon slid her feet into a stance, one hand resting on her rapier. James looked around wildly, and upon realized he had no weapon, raised his fists and fell into a clumsy fighting position.

“What is our task?” Jeon asked cooly, eyes glinting. James nodded in her direction as if to say, ‘yeah, what she said’.

“Knight, you must show your strength against multiple opponents. You must battle and defeat two droids to prove your worth. Hero, you are the leader of this Quest. Defend your comrade and show you can fight on both offence and defence. I see you have no weapon, so I will grant you one. What is your preferred weapon?”

“Baseball bat!” James panicked, shouting out the first thing to come to mind. He paused, then nodded sharply. “A metal baseball bat, please.”

“.... A baseball bat?”

James glanced around, dropping his fists. “Yeah,” he said shortly.

“What is a ‘baseball bat’?”

“It’s… uh… it’s like a long cylinder of metal that gradually gets bigger on one end and on the other has a leather grip and a little knob so it doesn’t slip out of your grasp and brain someone when you swing it,” James explained, making vague hand gestures as he talked.

“Umm… like this?”

A panel of stone slid open and a metal stick was pushed out. It had the basic shape of a baseball bat, but instead of lightweight aluminum, when James picked it up he realized it was solid iron or some metal of that ilk. The knob at the end didn’t flare out like a normal bat, but was rather a fist sized ruby.

“Uh, close enough,” James muttered, hefting the bat over his shoulder with relative ease. The stone slid shut and there was a satisfied hum from Lord Inoshi.

James looked over at Jeon, who was watching him with a mildly constipated face, one eyebrow cocked.

“What?” James asked defensively. Jeon shook her head.

“I still cannot believe I got dragged into this,” she sighed. “And that somehow, you are the Hero.”

James scowled. “You know, I’m kind of sick of being the butt of your jokes. I’m not dumb and I’m not weak.” He swung the bat at the wall, leaving a sizable dent in the stone. “I am the Hero of this shitty Quest, and you better come to terms with it real quick.”

Jeon, for her part, looked impressed, lips quirking up slightly. “Alright, Hero. Let’s see how you fare in battle. Let’s see if you can ‘put your money where your mouth is’, as you humans say and we’ll find just how ‘strong’ you really are,” she chuckled, drawing her rapier and facing the droids, James at her back, a smirk finding its way across his lips.

The droids powered up and their Trial began.

 

_______________________________

 

Irma felt oddly calm. His eyes roamed the marble room they had been blocked into. Statues of nine headed Hydras and the winged Phoenix lined the room, three Gladiator droids kneeling in each of the four corners. Irma met Ahalm’s gaze and they exchanged a knowing look, Irma drawing the dagger hidden under his jacket and Ahalm the axe on his back.

“Hello, there,” Lord Inoshi’s voice rumbled. “I can see you’re just raring to go, aren’t you?” He sounded like he was eyeing their weapons, a light chuckled echoing through the room.

“What is our task?” Ahalm asked, voice cool and detached, a soldier ready for battle. Lord Inoshi sounded slightly taken aback when he answered.

“You’re not going to ask about your friends?” He asked. “They asked about you.”

“I’m betting it was James and Marley who asked, right?” Irma sighed. He took Lord Inoshi’s silence as a yes. “They weren’t asking about us, Lord. They were asking about each other. We hardly know them, and they hardly know us, but they know each other and seem to be very good friends. I’m fairly certain they don’t care about us as much as you think they do.”

Lord Inoshi hummed contemplatively. “If you insist.” A dummy rose from the floor, a couple feet from them. “Guard, it is your job to, well, guard this dummy. You must not let a single scratch appear on it.”

Ahalm nodded gravely, walking to stand by the stuffed, human shaped dummy.

“I must say, you two are much more cooperative than your companions,” Lord Inoshi chuckled. He continued before either one of them could answer. “Mage, you must prove yourself useful in this fight. Prove you are an important part of this Quest and that you are worthy of accompanying the Hero.”

Irma grit his teeth and swallowed hard, feeling his hands tremble . He shoved down the fear tightening his chest and took a deep breath, tightening his grip on his knife. He would show them. He would show them he wasn’t nothing, that he was worth something. He needed to let go, just a little bit.

“Are you ready?” Lord Inoshi asked rhetorically. “BEGIN!”

Panels in the walls slid up and people mixed with droids marched into the small enclosure, weapons at the ready. Ahalm slid into position, axe heavy in his hands. He needed to hold back, just a little bit.

“You ready?” He called to Irma. Irma responded with a tight nod and Ahalm felt a sudden sinking in his chest and a sense of foreboding. Maybe joining them hadn’t been such a good idea after all.

 

________________________

End chapter 3


	4. Chapter 4

Start chapter 4

________________________

 

Marley knew this wasn’t good. She crouched down behind obstacles Lord Inoshi had placed in the dark, which was the cause of three of her injuries. For some reason Lord Inoshi just didn’t understand that, even if she was a Grim Reaper, she couldn’t see in the dark.

Or maybe he did know and just didn’t care.

Marley felt it could go either way.

She gripped her scythe tighter and slipped closer to the men as silently as she could, her soft boots making next to no sound on the (mostly) smooth marble floor. She felt the chill touch of the Reaper on her shoulder, the feeling slowly becoming familiar. She paused and listened.

The Grim Reaper didn’t really say anything, but rather sent waves through her head, suggestions and feelings mingling with her own. She felt it pulling on her mind, urging her to broaden her senses. Not her normal five, but a sixth that pulled just behind her eyes. Slowly light began to seep from different points in front of her. They all glowed white, some brighter than others.

An almost unbearable warmth pulled her attention to the wall to her right. A blinding light, red in color, radiated from past the stone and somehow she knew it was James. A giddy laugh almost escaped her lips before she could stop it, but she clamped her mouth shut tight, the seriousness of the situation not lost on her. A smaller, much much dimmer blue light was almost drowned out by James’.... Soul? She guessed. The blue light must have been Jeon soul. Marley vaguely remembered something from when her parents forced her to church in years past. Something about Deadly Sins.

Red for Lust, Blue for Pride, Green for Envy, Orange for Wrath, Purple for Sloth, Yellow for Greed, and Pink for Gluttony.

Did that mean James’ ‘Sin’ was Lust? Oh, man, Marley was never gonna let him live that down. But she could see why Jeon’s soul would be Prideful. She had only known the girl for a few hours at most, but from what she had seen, there was an underlying arrogance to all of her actions, a self assuredness that was dim but definitely there. A sudden thought struck Marley.

She turned her head to the left, where she knew Ahalm and Irma had been separated from her.

Orange glowed like the sun, Ahalm’s soul writhing like fire and anger, threatening to burn all who dared face him. It was fluctuating madly and Marley felt a thrill of fear pass through her heart for the man she barely knew. She glanced away from Ahalm’s soul, the fire burning her eyes.

Pulsing green assaulted her eyes as she turned them to Irma. It wormed its way to her heart, deceptively comforting and kind, only to turn and bite when she pushed it away. It shook with a need to prove something, anything to someone, anyone who would listen. Something ached inside her, a blackness swallowing her heart. Morbidly, she wondered if her own soul was even there, and even if it was, if it just a cold, dead, black husk of what it once might have been.

She shook her head and looked away from her friends, pulling her focus back to the task at hand. She licked her lips and followed the souls in front of her.

Five men. She must kill five men without being detected. Should be easy enough.

She didn’t think of the blood that would dye her red, or the pained screams that would be forever silenced by her hand. She did not think of the families who would lose a husband, a brother, a father, because she could not afford to. She could not afford to lose her place at James’ side. She could not hesitate.

At least that’s what she told herself when she pulled her blade from a man’s chest with a sickening squelch. She glanced down at the last of the men at her feet, eyes cold and dark. Seven. Seven. Seven.

Why hadn’t she stopped at five?

 

_________________________________________

 

James fought with the strength of a twenty year old football player with a baseball bat. Which was to say, he mostly did a lot of flailing and running.

Jeon fought elegantly, jabbing and twisting and slicing down opponent after opponent and just generally making James feel bad about himself. It really didn't help that Jeon felt the need to point out his flaws every five minutes.

“Your stance is slipping,” Jeon called out, sing songing the words.

“Yeah, that's really not helping as much as you think it is, Jeon!” James yelped as a sword came dangerously close to his neck. He swung his bat and smashed in the droid's head. Jeon felled three more. James most certainly did not pout, thank you very much.

Suddenly, there was a strange ripple in the air, an unbalancing around them. A tipping of the scales.

“What in the world?!” Jeon shouted, leaping back from a droid she had just decapitated. James watched in mild horror as it stood and walked forward. It moved with the same speed and dexterity-if not even more so-that it had when it was living.

“Dear god,” James whispered in quickly rising terror as all of the destroyed droids began to rise to their feet. 

“Inoshi, what’s happening!” Jeon screamed, glaring at the ceiling and dodging the broken droid’s attacks.

“I think your friend has lost control of his magic,” Lord Inoshi replied, sounding unnaturally panicked. “I’m going to drop the walls. This is not something you can handle alone. This is something not even I could handle.” There was the sharp sound of stone against stone and James looked to his right and saw a blood-soaked Marley standing amidst seven fallen bodies. Dark tribal tattoos wound from her fingers up into her sleeves and her hands gripped a bloody iron scythe. Their eyes met and for a second James didn’t recognize his best friend staring back at him. Then she blinked and the cold emptiness was gone.

“James?” Marley called over to him. “What’s happening?”

But James had stopped looking at her, because behind her a forest grew straight out of the stone ground. Trees reached the ceiling and vines curled around the room, covering the walls and the floor. It seemed like the forest had been cut in half when the walls dropped and for a second James, Jeon and Marley could see Irma in the center, quite literally glowing with power and strength, the plants growing around his legs and arms. For half a second Irma glanced their way and James saw the way his eyes glared with a need to do… something. James really didn’t know what, he was never that good at reading people, he was almost twenty yards away from him, and plants were quickly filling up the open space.

“Well that can’t be good,” Jeon commented mildly, sword swinging up to block an oncoming attack from one of the zombie-droids. James snapped out of his stupor just in time to catch a punch in the gut. He doubled over, breath going out in one big gust.

“James!” Jeon called, nimbly dodging attack after attack, trying to make her way over to him. James coughed heavily, collapsed on all fours, and gave her a weak thumbs up before dropping to the ground and rolling, the droid’s fist cracking the floor where he had just been. James rolled a bit longer before pushing himself up to his feet, using the bat as a crutch, one arm clamped over his gut.

“Are you ok?!” Marley shouted, starting to run towards him.

“Don’t!” James shouted, throwing out the arm around his gut in Marley’s direction. She skidded to a stop, nearly tripping over her own feet. “Go help Irma and Ahalm, Marley. We’ll hold off the zombi-droids as long as we can.”

Marley hesitated, looking between the ever-growing forest and James, who shot her a self assured smile. “What are you waiting for? We got this!”

Marley gave him one more searching look before nodding firmly, pivoting on her heel, and running straight into the forest, cutting a path with her new scythe.

Jeon finally reached James and shot him a look. “I hope you’re right, James, for all our sakes.”

James hefted his bat higher and faced the undying army with all the courage he could muster. “I hope so too, Jeon.”

 

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End Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hola, tis me BR0KUT0, we took a little to finally update this but everything is hectic and yeah. I just wanna say, don't let Mello fool you, I just come up with concepts, Mello writes it all and edits and is amazing. But yeah anyway hopened you're enjoying!!


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